Opponents of on-line sports activities betting in Florida misplaced their newest battle Thursday in opposition to a Seminole Tribe settlement with the state that permits playing.
The Florida Supreme Courtroom dominated that opponents filed the fallacious sort of petition to problem the compact between the Florida Seminole Tribe and Gov. Ron DeSantis' administration. The deal will earn tons of of hundreds of thousands of in on-line sports activities betting and different types of playing for each the tribe and the state authorities.
The choice was the newest setback for West Flagler Associates and Bonita-Fort Myers Company, which function racetracks and poker rooms in Florida. They’re additionally difficult the pact in federal court docket and have requested the USA Supreme Courtroom to think about their case.
An lawyer for the opponents didn’t reply to an e mail looking for remark. The court docket ruling permits the opponents to file a request for a rehearing of the case.
The 2 parimutuel corporations say the pact signed by the governor and the tribe in 2021 offers the tribe a monopoly on sports activities betting. Additionally they argue it creates a backdoor to a requirement, handed by voters in 2018 as an modification to the Florida Structure, citizen initiative is required to broaden playing off tribal lands.
They stated DeSantis and the Florida Legislature, which accredited the compact, improperly overstepped their authority by authorizing sports activities betting on tribal lands.
Opponents have questioned whether or not on-line sports activities betting will be allowed on tribal lands when solely the pc servers are there, accepting bets made utilizing cellphones and computer systems from wherever in Florida.
The tribe argued that the legislature has the authority to determine the place on-line playing is initiated, and the modification doesn’t change that.
DeSantis' attorneys and legislative leaders stated sports activities betting is completely different from on line casino playing and due to this fact not prohibited by the constitutional modification.
The tribe launched its on-line sports activities betting operation late final yr, and Florida's share of the 2024 income is already greater than $120 million. State financial estimators predict that tribal playing income sharing might attain $four.four billion by the top of this decade.